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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Seize the Tuesday is a book blogger meme created by myself and the Let’s Get Lost Buddies Street Team, to share stories about how we’ve seized the Tuesday, with a special focus on the particular book we’re reading. We’ll share our posts online with the hashtag: #LetsAllGetLost.

The idea is to share little ways in which you may have embraced Bree’s motto of seizing the Tuesday. To relate it to books, you can talk about what book you’re reading, and how you stole some moments from the day to enjoy reading. It doesn’t have to be about reading, but we all know that a well-read day is a day seized. The idea is not just to help spread the word on LGL, but also to remind people to live fully, even/especially if that means spending a part of your day reading.

I've been blessed as a blogger to be able to attend many bookish events and meet some incredible authors. A couple of those incredible authors have asked me to beta read for them, and of course I agreed. This week, that's what I'm doing.

What's exciting is that you're helping out the authors with their books before they get published. Whether you're asked to read it s a once over to make sure it's making sense and going in the right direction, or you're asked to look at it in major detail and critique, you're helping them out. and we bloggers are all about helping our authors!

I've got two manuscripts lined up back to back to beta, and I'm plowing my way through. A little slower than if they were physical copies of course, for the sake of eye strain, but still plowing! That means I won't be reviewing them, but as soon as they become published... *Evil grin*

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Seize the Tuesday is a book blogger meme created by myself and the Let’s Get Lost Buddies Street Team, to share stories about how we’ve seized the Tuesday, with a special focus on the particular book we’re reading. We’ll share our posts online with the hashtag: #LetsAllGetLost.

The idea is to share little ways in which you may have embraced Bree’s motto of seizing the Tuesday. To relate it to books, you can talk about what book you’re reading, and how you stole some moments from the day to enjoy reading. It doesn’t have to be about reading, but we all know that a well-read day is a day seized. The idea is not just to help spread the word on LGL, but also to remind people to live fully, even/especially if that means spending a part of your day reading.

It's officially 2015, and you know what that means: This is the first Seize the Tuesday of the New Year! And I know you know what THAT means: You've probably just finished your 2014 reading goal. And you're probably ready to start your 2015 goals.

Well so am I.

Shall we set goals

I read 71 books this past year, but I want to up that this year. My goal for 2015 is going to be 110 books. Why 110?

Yeah, I don't know, it just sounded good and it's higher than 71.

SO GOALS. Did you set one? If so, I want to hear about it! Drop a comment or tweet at me!

ALSO I've seen people using Goodreads to keep track of their goal progress. I've just gotten into the habit of keeping a Book Journal. Do you use GR for your reading goals? How do you like it?

In honor of ENSNARED (Splintered book 3) being released today, I thought I'd post my review!

I'm not a big fan of retellings. I like my fairy tales and my classics left just as they are, thankyouverymuch. That being said, I could not get enough of SPLINTERED. I absolutely loved it with all of my heart.

Alyssa can hear things that most people can't. She can hear the whispers of bugs and plants. This ability has plagued the women in her family for generations, all the way back to where it started-- Alice Liddell. The girl from who Lewis Caroll got his inspiration for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. With her mom in the mental ward for hearing things only descendants of Alice can hear, Alyssa knows to keep her own ability a secret.

Her world is turned upside down when she finds herself in Wonderland with her neighbor/childhood best friend/crush, and the only way to get back home is to fix everything that Alice ruined when she came down the rabbit hole.

With a love triangle so strange that it makes you fall for both guys, and twists and turns at every chapter, SPLINTERED has potential to make it's way to my list of favorite trilogies. Every time I thought I knew exactly what was gong on, I was absolutely wrong, and that's what made it such a thrilling read. Suspense, mystery, fantasy, and romance all in one-- you can't go wrong with SPLINTERED by A.G. Howard.

Saturday, January 3, 2015

I have this journal that I keep that lets me keep track of how many books I read. I only started it in 2014, and I would've posted this a lot sooner, but we went somewhere for the holidays. And like a boss, I left my book journal home. I know. There's nothing you can tell me that I haven't already told myself.

BUT NOW I HAVE MY JOURNAL!

And I know how many books I read last year.

Are you ready?

The grand total is: 71

Not as many as I was hoping for, but that just means that I have to read more this year, right? You don't see me complaining *smirk*

I thought I'd go ahead and list the books I read, so here we go:

- The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

- City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

- City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

- City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

- Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

- Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

- Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
- The Fallout by S.A. Bodeen
- The Land of Dragor: Gift of Charms by Julia Suzuki
- If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin
- Looking for Alaska by John Green
- Second Chance by Heather Brewer
- Paper Towns by John Green
- Third Strike by Heather Brewer
- The Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
- The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer
- Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
- Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige
- Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
- Across the Universe by Beth Revis
- Find Me by Romily Bernard
- Every Day by David Levithan
- Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott
- Towering by Alex Flinn
- Fledgling by Nicole Conway
- Boys Like You by Juliana Stone
- The Taking by Kimberly Derting
- City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare
- The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu
- NIL by Lynne Matson
- The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
- Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater
- The Break-Up Artist by Phillip Siegel
- The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes
- The Murder Complex by Lindsay Cummings
- Splintered by A.G. Howard
- Summer on the Short Bus by Bethany Crandell
- Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth
- Avian by Nicole Conway
- Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
- Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
- Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins
- Of Breakable Things by A. Lynden Rolland
- Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid
- Exile by Kevin Emerson
- Defy by Sara B. Larson
- Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
- The Eye of Minds by James Dashner
- The Girl From the Well by Rin Chupeco
- Remember Me by Romily Bernard
- The Young World by Chris Weitz
- Percy Jackson and the Olympians (All Five)
- Heroes of Olympus (All Five)
- Talon by Julie Kagawa
- Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
- The Sands of Nezza by M.L. Forman
- Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
- The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton (Again, because favorite)
- My True Love Gave to Me edited by Stephanie Perkins
- The Night House by Rachel Tafoya
- The Giver by Lois Lowry
- Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry
- The Messenger by Lois Lowry
- (Plus a Beta Read. Sorry, Can't tell you!)

Top 2014 Releases:

Summer on the Short Bus by Bethany Crandell

NIL by Lynne Matson

Talon by Julie Kagawa

Exile by Kevin Emerson

Fledgling by Nicole Conway

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

The Young World by Chris Weitz

The Night House by Rachel Tafoya

The Taking by Kimberly Derting

Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater

Authors Met in 2014:

Heather Brewer

Kimberly Derting

Jennifer Mathieu

Ava Dellaira

Kiera Cass

Kelley Armstrong

Leigh Bardugo

Bethany Crandell

A.G. Howard

A. Lynden Rolland

Phillip Siegel

Lindsay Cummings

Paula Stokes

Emmy Laybourne

Whitney Miller

Lynne Matson

Maggie Stiefvater

James Dashner

Bruce Cameron

James Frey

Nils Johnson-Shelton

Cassandra Clare

Holly Black

Adi Aldaid

Sara B. Larson

Stephanie Perkins

Kevin Emerson

Joan Bauer

Kendare Blake

Wendelin Van Draanen

Eliot Schrefer

Tod Hasak-Lowy

Julie Kagawa

So this has been 2014 in way of books. Let's see how it compares to my post a year from now.

Thursday, January 1, 2015

I don't know about you guys, but when I hear the words "New Years Resolution" I just roll my eyes. No one ever sticks to them like they say they will. But this year, I'm following through with my Resolutions. That's right, I have more than one-- and things are about to get serious.

First off, I'm going to start blogging a lot more. This one and two posts a week, sometimes month, is just not cutting it. The activeness is going to shoot up. So be looking for reviews, any special cover releases, blog tours, and of course, giveaways!

Second, if you've talked to me before, then you know how much I want to be an author. Well, my first novel is finished (Urban Fantasy) and I'm working my way through two others right now (Contemporary and Dystopia). I'm halfway through my contemp and close to half in my dystopia, so we'll see who catches up first! That being said, I'm going to be doing a lot of writing, and it's time to crack down and start querying for my Fantasy. I'll keep you updated!

Thirdly, 2014 was an exceptional year when it comes to friends. Twitter has introduced me to so many fantastic people, and thankfully I have FOR SURE plans to meet one of them. Plans are still under way for a meeting with my second twestie, but my hopes are still high!

I think 2015 is going to be THE year. Have you made resolutions? Drop a comment, I'd love to know what they are!

To start things off, how about a New Year's Giveaway?!

The giveaway will include two of the hottest debuts of 2014! And guess what, they're both SiGnEd!

DOROTHY MUST DIE by Danielle Paige, and SPLINTERED by A.G. Howard, which comes with a key necklace just like Alyssa's!